Sometimes a Loss can be a Gain
by GlobalDomination
Summary: The twins make a sacrifice and help the clueless duo find their true feelings for each other. HaruxTama Warning: Spoilers for Ch. 55 and 56 of the manga.


Author's Notes: Hi, it's me, Global D. I'm taking a break from "Sakura Kiss" right now and going with a wild idea I have for a oneshot. Well, it's not the idea that's wild per se...it's the idea that I can write a decent oneshot with that idea. Oh, well. Here goes nothing. 

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Ouran High School Host Club. Please don't sue me. I don't like getting sued. It's...unpleasant.

**WARNING: **Spoilers for chapters 55 and 56 of the manga.

* * *

"Where is it?" Haruhi murmured impatiently to herself as she swiveled her head and looked around the 3rd Music Room. Her Calculus textbook did not realize the gravity of the situation and kept itself well hidden. 

"Honestly," she complained as she kneeled down and looked underneath the rich brown, velvet couch . "Those two should be more responsible--especially with things that aren't theirs."

Her large brown, eyes scrutinized the dark space beneath the couch, but she found nothing but dust bunnies.

They seemed to mock her in her frustration.

Haruhi drew back her head and settled against the couch with a sigh.

"I'm never lending Hikaru and Kaoru anything again," she resolved loudly. Her face darkened and became a heavy scowl as she glared around the room again, willing for her textbook to show itself.

It did not comply to her requests.

Haruhi gave up and decided to abandon her search for a moment or so. Her thoughts turned to...

"Agh!" she exclaimed, blushing furiously. "Why do I keep thinking of him!?"

She buried her bright red face in her hands and bit her lip in confusion. "I thought it was just a fever, but..."

Haruhi closed her eyes and tried to distract herself from thoughts of a certain lovable blonde host.

* * *

"That was a bit mean, Hika-chan, Kao-chan," Hunny said, pouting at the grinning twins. 

"They'll thank us eventually," Hikaru and Kaoru replied with identical expressions of mischief and wicked humor.

Mori said nothing and merely ushered his cousin to their sleek, black car.

"I hope it works out," Hunny called to the twins before he and Mori shut the doors of their Royce and sped away.

"Are you sure, Hikaru?" Kaoru asked quietly, as he and his brother waved the seniors good-bye.

Hikaru put his arm down shakily and entwined his fingers in Kaoru's. Kaoru turned to him and grimaced at the pain he saw in his brother's eyes.

Finally, Hikaru said softly, his voice raw with emotion. "Yes."

* * *

The host club's "shadow king" stood waiting in front of the imposing, black school gates. He looked up from his watch just as a blue blur went past him. 

"Where are you going?" he asked the retreating figure.

"I forgot Kuma-chan!" Tamaki yelled over his shoulder as he ran back towards the school building.

Kyoya sighed.

He caught a glimpse of the creepy, stuffed bear in his bag. It stared at him accusedly.

_"I can't believe I'm doing this," _he thought. _"Stupid idiot." _

* * *

_Thud. Thud. Thud._

Tamaki's footsteps came fast and heavy as he sprinted towards the 3rd Music Room.

Perhaps he wouldn't have run so fast if he knew what was ahead.

Perhaps he would have run faster.

* * *

_"Perhaps it's in here..." _Haruhi thought, opening the mahogany cabinet that stored Hunny's candy, Tamaki's trinkets (his box was too full), and miscellaneous items the other members owned. 

_Bang!_

She straightened up at the sound of the door opening, and turned around to see who it was, jerking in surprise at the sight of the tall, blonde young man.

"H-haruhi?" Tamaki asked, panting heavily as he rested his arm on the doorway. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask the same of you," Haruhi answered, looking at Tamaki in vague curiosity and slight discomfort. She still felt awkward around him, especially now, while he looked at her with deep intensity.

"Oh...I forgot Kuma-chan." Tamaki shook his windblown hair out of his eyes and tried to regain his breath. "Have you seen him?"

"Nooo..." she replied slowly, trying to repress a sarcastic remark about Tamaki's toy bear, and focusing on the task at hand (i.e. finding her wayward book).

"Oh, well that's okay then." Tamaki walked towards her with a jovial smile. "I guess I have to look for him."

Haruhi nodded mutely.

_"Great," _she thought, _"I'm alone with Tamaki...again."_ Feeling her cheeks heaten up, Haruhi turned away from Tamaki and began to rummage noisily in the cabinet.

"So, what are _you _looking for?" Tamaki asked, joining her in her search.

"The twins borrowed my Calculus textbook," Haruhi answered shortly. "They seem to have lost it in this room."

"And they didn't offer to help look for it?" Tamaki asked angrily.

"They said they left it on the coffee table," she replied miserably, looking for a glimpse of her dark blue book in vain. "But it wasn't there."

"I'll help you look for it, too," Tamaki assured her with a confident smile.

His hand accidentally brushed against hers as they reached for the same object, and Haruhi jumped snapping her hand back as if it had been burned.

"Are you okay, Haruhi?" Tamaki's face was full of concern and his dark violet eyes were soft and kind.

Haruhi stammered something in reply as she turned away and continued to look for her textbook, hoping with all her mind that she and Tamaki would not have any more physical contact.

Yet hoping with all her heart they would.

* * *

"What made you realize her true feelings, Hikaru?" Kaoru asked gravely as he and Hikaru sat on the floor in front of the 3rd Music Room. They tried to seem like idle students just hanging about; but the two were tense and affected the manner of guarding the Music Room, making them look rather out of place in the empty hallway. 

"Do you remember when Tamaki was making sure that Haruhi forgave him for lying?"

"Yeah." Kaoru smiled at the memory and of Kyoya telling the story of Tamaki's mother.

"Haruhi ignored Tamaki and asked us a question instead."

"Yeah..." Kaoru tried to concentrate on that scene, instead of Tamaki's tears of joy and the ones he himself shed when he and Hikaru came home.

"She was blushing."

Kaoru nodded sadly and looked carefully at his brother.

"Yes, I...I didn't want to say anything."

"That was just the beginning," Hikaru whispered. "Ever since then, Haruhi's been acting really weird around Tamaki...not looking him in the eyes, blushing every time he tried to talk to her..."

"And then..." Kaoru continued, stretching his long legs in front of him.

"And then she told us about the kiss."

There was a slight pause.

"She said she felt dizzy and her heart beats faster whenever she sees Tamaki," Hikaru said, leaning his head on his brother's shoulder.

"She couldn't hide it from anyone," Kaoru added, smiling bitterly. "Except for Tamaki."

"I decided that I wanted Haruhi to know her true feelings," Hikaru said firmly, but with profound sorrow. "It's not fair for her to be confused and afraid of her emotions."

"You're a good friend, Hikaru." Kaoru put his arm around his brother and held him tightly. "I'm not sure I would've done the same thing."

Hikaru smiled and closed his eyes.

_"Good luck, tono," _he thought in a quiet, mournful triumph at his defeat.

* * *

"Aaah," Tamaki placed his arms akimbo as he groaned in frustration. "Those twins are so much trouble. I bet they were the ones who took Kuma-chan, too." 

"Yeah..." Haruhi said, collapsing on the couch with a sigh. They had searched the cabinet, Tamaki's treasure box, and every inch of the 3rd Music Room to no avail. Kuma-chan and her Calculus textbook simply did not want to be found. Perhaps they were relaxing in a beach somewhere, drinking coconut juice and enjoying the time of their lives.

Tamaki settled wearily beside her. "Well, what should we do, Haruhi?"

Haruhi flinched and scooted away. Tamaki drew back at this sudden movement and stared at Haruhi in shock.

"Haruhi," he said slowly. "I've noticed that you've been avoiding me lately. Why?"

"I...I haven't been avoiding you," Haruhi mumbled, staring at her hands. They were tightly entwined, and shook slightly with nervousness.

"Yes, you have," Tamaki said, his voice becoming deeper as it took on a more serious tone. "Haruhi, please look at me."

Haruhi kept her eyes downcast.

"Ever since Kyoya came back from the school trip, you've stopped talking to me. You don't look at me, you try to keep away from me while we're hosting..."

Here Tamaki paused and he shifted slightly to his side, so that he was facing Haruhi.

"Please understand," he continued, "if I did anything to offend you, I didn't mean it. I apologize for whatever it is you're mad at me about."

He cupped her jaw and tilted her chin up gently.

"I want you to tell me what's wrong," Tamaki whispered. "Haruhi...look at me."

Haruhi raised her eyes slowly, and large honey brown eyes met dark amethyst ones for a brief moment.

"Tamaki..." she murmured, meeting his eyes unblinkingly. "I...I think...I think I may be falling in love with you."

* * *

"What should we do to make them feel better, Takashi?" Hunny asked the silent young man next to him. 

"Give them time," Mori replied, placing an assuring hand on Hunny's head. "Give _him _time."

* * *

Kyoya threw his pen on his desk with and leaned back on his chair with dismay. 

"Why am I so worried?" he asked himself as he covered his eyes with his hand, and stared at his bedroom ceiling through his fingers. "Those two are dense, but they'll figure things out."

Determined to finish his homework, Kyoya bent over his desk with renewed energy--scribbling answers manically to distract himself.

But he never did get very far until these thoughts got the better of him and forced concentration to make room for more worry of how his clueless best friend was faring.

* * *

Hikaru lifted his head from his brother's shoulder, and looked intreatingly at him. "Let's go home, Kaoru." 

Kaoru nodded, and the two stood up with a graceful synchronicity that would have put Tian Liang and Yang Jinghui to shame.

The two walked slowly down the hallway, hand in hand, and with the same feelings of heaviness in their hearts.

* * *

"Tamaki?" Haruhi asked, afraid of the sudden glazed look in Tamaki's eyes. "Are you...okay?" 

A grim silence followed her words as Tamaki continued to look like a man who had just been told his girlfriend on the side was pregnant because him.

With twins.

After a few minutes of trying to prod some life back into the boy, Haruhi gave up and rolled her eyes instead.

"If I knew you were going to react like this, I wouldn't have said anything," she said sadly. "The truth is, Tamaki, ever since you kissed me on the night we talked about your mom, I...I haven't been able to stop thinking about you. I couldn't look you in the eye because I was confused of my feelings, but..."

Taking a deep breath and closed her eyes, Haruhi continued, "I've realized that I can't hide it from myself anymore."

She opened her eyes and looked straight at his. "I love you, Tamaki."

She said it with her straightforward, simple way of saying things, but the manner in which she confessed belied the tangle of complex emotions she felt inside.

"I love you too, Haruhi."

Then, suddenly, she was in Tamaki's arms and he was embracing her tightly--as if he was trying to explain all the affection he felt for her in that embrace.

He drew back and kissed her chastely on the cheek. Haruhi felt the shyness and unsureness in his actions.

"Are you still in denial, Tamaki?" she teased, placing her small, nimble hands on his cheeks, pulling his face towards hers. She leaned forward and placed her lips softly on his.

Tamaki smiled and wrapped his arms around her.

"Of course not...daughter."

Haruhi frowned at him in mock irritation and poked him sharply. "Don't be mean. I'm not used to this boyfriend-girlfriend thing."

Tamaki's eyes widened and he beamed like a delighted child.

"Then we better practice, don't we?" he said, leaning in for another kiss.

* * *

**Author's Farewells: **Yeah, it's not a satisfying conclusion and the story had as much depth as a small puddle, but I had fun writing it and I hope you had fun reading it, too. Haruhi was a little OOC, but I wanted her to be a bit bolder and quicker to take action in this story. Well, that's all from me...and now I'm going to work on "Sakura Kiss" so my readers don't lynch me...haha, what readers? Happy Halloween, everyone! 


End file.
